Should Tottenham look to hijack this transfer move?

Loic Remy has been lighting up the Premier League so far this season. Five goals in his last three appearances have seen Newcastle rise from their previously precarious position into the relatively sheltered mid-table.

Currently on loan from QPR, Remy is likely to be a man in high demand come the summer and Newcastle will be keen to ward off other interested suitors. The Mirror reports that the Magpies will move quickly to tie up a permanent deal for the Frenchman in January:

“Loic Remy will be handed the chance to seal a permanent move to Newcastle in January.”

“The Geordies have a £6million fee agreed with QPR for the on-loan striker, on top of the £2m they are already paying for his loan spell.”

It is widely believed that Tottenham will again revive their interest in the mercurial Frenchman, and Newcastle may well struggle to capture Remy should the North Londoners enter the battle.

Is this a fight Spurs should be drawn into?

Remy is undoubtedly a huge talent, his brief spell in England has been evidence enough for his ability and clearly someone of that class would fit in easily at most clubs.

Spurs though are already a club with a huge array of attacking talents. The frontline may be misfiring but few would argue that there are many striking departments with greater depth than Spurs’. Defoe, Soldado and Adebayor are all on their day quality options and I would argue the latter two are potentially world-class.

AVB continues to look towards a 4-2-3-1 variation meaning that at any one time only one of those frontmen can play. Add to these options the emerging potential of Harry Kane and you would struggle to see how Remy would really fit in at Spurs.

My only thought is that Spurs may potentially look to move on an ageing Jermain Defoe whilst they still have the chance. Selling Defoe for anything around £5m and buying Remy for what is reportedly £8m and I think Spurs would have improved their options without spending too much.

The reason though that I think Spurs will avoid any deal for the Frenchman is of less of a footballing nature.

Remy is a renowned troublemaker with a rape case hanging over his head. Only last week he was embroiled in an incident involving his car and a taxi in the middle of Newcastle town centre, just one issue in a long line of misdemeanours. This isn’t the kind of player that Levy generally likes to take a punt on. Spurs are as much a marketing tool as they are a football club, someone like Loic Remy hardly adds to the kind of image that Spurs are trying to create. Moreover, AVB is building a team with a sense of cohesion, the addition of someone like Remy regardless of how good he is just creates the potential for unnecessary unrest. Why upset the balance that Spurs have achieved of late?

Another question is whether Remy really adds anything that Spurs don’t have already. He isn’t the same as either Defoe or Soldado, but he is in a way quite similar. All three are regarded as excellent finishers who are also somewhat limited in their general all round contributions. Having seen a bit of Soldado last season as well, I would argue of the three he offers the most complete option, whilst hardly a giant he does have the ability to hold up play and involve others in the attack.

So when Spurs consider a move for Remy they are effectively looking at £8-10m for a potential Soldado backup. If it was anyone else I would argue that this would be prudent business, relatively cheap in fact by current market standards. However, his previous off-field record speaks for itself and it is no surprise that there isn’t more interest in the Frenchman’s signature.

The lack of other big name clubs in the picture should be a warning to Spurs. Remy is clearly highly talented, but the lack of interest really speaks volumes of the man.

So no Spurs shouldn’t be hijacking Newcastle’s deal. Spurs find themselves in the enviable position where they don’t need to go out on a whim in the transfer market and instead I expect their January activity to be much more calculated than a gamble like this.